Breathing: necessary, unconscious, continuous, usually an easy activity, we don't even learn it, we just do it. Prayer: ... err? a learned activity, a conscious effort, we 'might do it wrong', we are not sure why we do it or who is 'listening' or what effect it has but that doesn't stop most people praying... Continue Reading →

​We had great fun yesterday at our Worship for All service on the theme of HOPE. We began by lighting our Advent Ring. "We light 1, 2, 3, 4 candles on our ring, one for each Sunday in Advent," I said, "when do you think we light the fifth candle in the middle?" "ON MY... Continue Reading →

Based on a true story, this film shows how ordinary people can show extraordinary courage in the face of oppression. Otto and Elise Hampel lived in Berlin during the second World War, after suffering a devastating loss, they began a simple but terrifying campaign of resistance. Acting entirely alone, they began to write propaganda postcards... Continue Reading →

Have just caught up with the recent film "Jackie" a portrayal by Natalie Portman of Jacqueline Kennedy in the weeks immediately after her husband's assassination. It's a powerful and thought-provoking portrayal of grief but it's also a story about how we construct stories. There are several ways in to this story: firstly we see the... Continue Reading →

I'm doing two things badly at the moment: dieting and exercise. For the last three weeks, I have committed myself again to that most miserable of disciplines: dieting which for the sake of my health, simply has to be done. I never used to find exercising tedious but now that my various aches and pains... Continue Reading →

The opening episode in the BBC's Blue Planet II series was absolutely extraordinary. So much diversity: fish of all colours, some with crowns on their heads. Sea creatures that look totally as if they'd come from a movie about aliens, dolphins and whales that appeared to be friends and a tiny little fish that knew... Continue Reading →

I have just completed a retreat at El Palmeral. What a privilege! I feel like I have entered a little pocket of heaven on earth. Snuggled away in the Spanish countryside near Alicante, Mike and Julie welcome 10 to 12 guests regularly into what is their home and is also a retreat centre. You... Continue Reading →

This made me laugh out loud, I loved point 4 and the final sentence the best. Dear Dogs and Cats, The dishes with the paw print are yours and contain your food. The other dishes are mine and contain my food. Please note that placing a paw print in the middle of my plate and... Continue Reading →